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Rice defends US terror policies

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has admitted that terror suspects are flown abroad for interrogation, but denied they were tortured.

She said suspects were moved by plane under a process known as rendition, and said this was “a lawful weapon”.

But she refused to address claims that the CIA runs secret prisons abroad where suspects are interrogated without reference to international law.

She then flew to Europe, where she can expect tough questions on the issue.

Her first stop is Germany, where parliament has demanded to know the purpose of more than 400 flights, run by the US military, that landed or passed through German airspace.

She will also visit Romania – where human rights groups allege a detention centre from may have been located – and Brussels, where the EU has written to Washington asking for further details about US flights.

Indignant

Ms Rice made a robust defence of US policy, reflecting indignation that anyone would accuse it of condoning torture, says the BBC’s Clive Myrie in Washington.

She said the US would use “every lawful weapon to defeat these terrorists”, who were often essentially stateless and did not fit into any traditional military or criminal justice system.

“We have had to adapt,” she declared.

But she said the US always respected the sovereignty of allies, abided by the law and did not allow torture.

Our correspondent says Ms Rice’s tour of Europe will probably see her pressing her hosts for more co-operation, and less criticism, in the “war on terror”.

‘Lives saved’

She refused to address the question of secret prisons directly.

“We cannot discuss information that would compromise the success of intelligence, law enforcement, and military operations. We expect other nations share this view,” she said in a statement at Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland.

She said renditions had been carried out for decades between the US and its allies.

“Renditions take terrorists out of action, and save lives,” she said. “Such renditions are permissible under international law.”

The secretary of state said European countries often benefited from, and even assisted, US intelligence-gathering.

“The intelligence so gathered has stopped terrorist attacks and saved innocent lives – in Europe as well as in the United States and other countries,” she said.

She said European countries needed to decide what measures were acceptable in defending themselves from terrorism.

“It is up to those governments and their citizens to decide if they wish to work with us to prevent terrorist attacks against their own country or other countries, and decide how much sensitive information they can make public. They have a sovereign right to make that choice.

“So now before the next attack,” she said, “we should all face the hard choices that democratic governments face”.

I find the entire thing sickening and hypocritical. It is fucked up on so many levels. But this is not new information. See Mahar Arar’s personal account of being sent to Syria for torture. Or check out Human Rights Watch on the matter.